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Bioengineered Food Disclosure Law

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AltonBrownFanClub

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Posted 24 June 2021 - 09:21 PM

Hello all, I am hoping for guidance on the upcoming National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Law. It has been difficult to find what the threshold for BE products is. Our company that uses raw ingredients as well as ingredients/products from other manufacturers. The products we buy and use from other manufacturers are giving me some trouble. For example, we make a sauce with 1/2 of a purchased sauce and 1/2 proprietary ingredients. The purchased sauce contains a small amount of corn starch. Our suppliers have been reluctant/unable to disclose the GMO status of that corn starch. So my question is: How can I prepare for the compliance date when our suppliers have not declared their GMO status yet? Do highly processed ingredients (unlikely to contain DNA) used in small amounts (such as canola oil) need to be declared? I need a clear definition before I am willing to sign off on this project. I have only been in the industry for 2 months, and I am scrambling to bring things into compliance. :blink:  Any comments are welcome, and thank you all for being a great source of information. Here is the link to USDA's post about it: https://www.ams.usda...-regulations/be



AltonBrownFanClub

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Posted 28 June 2021 - 09:43 PM

I had this post formatted better, but it didn't post right. Sorry, but does anyone have any comments?



mgourley

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Posted 29 June 2021 - 12:01 PM

Excerpt from here

 

1. DEFINITION OF “BIOENGINEERING” AND “BIOENGINEERED FOOD”

The amended Act defines “bioengineering” with respect to a food as referring to a food “(A) that contains genetic material that has been modified through in vitro recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) techniques; and (B) for which the modification could not otherwise be obtained through conventional breeding or found in nature.” 7 U.S.C. 1639(1). In accordance with its statutory mandate and for purposes of consistency, AMS is directly incorporating this statutory definition into the definition of “bioengineered food”.

The NPRM invited public comment on two different interpretations of the statutory definition of “bioengineering” and on the scope of the regulatory definition of “bioengineered food.” Specifically, comments were solicited on whether refined foods and ingredients should be subject to disclosure under the NBFDS.

The first interpretation, identified as Position 1 in the NPRM, stated that refined products do not “contain genetic material that has been modified through in vitro recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) techniques” because the refining process rendered genetic material undetectable using common testing methods. The second interpretation, identified as Position 2 in the NPRM, stated that the scope of the definition of “bioengineering” applies to all foods produced from bioengineering, such as refined products.

AMS adopts Position 1 with some modifications. The statutory definition of “bioengineering” makes clear that food must “contain[ ] genetic material that has been modified through in vitro recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) techniques . . .” to be labeled as a “bioengineered food.” AMS believes that the definition of “bioengineering” sets forth the scope of the mandatory disclosure and, therefore, is incorporated into the definition of “bioengineered food.” A commenter suggested that AMS adopt a definition of “highly refined” if it adopts Position 1. We did not do so because the final rule does not use that term.

AMS has chosen to adopt the definition of “bioengineered food” that hews closely to the plain language of the amended Act. This definition references § 66.9 to explain how a regulated entity may demonstrate that a food, including a refined food ingredient, does not contain detectable modified genetic material. AMS has revised the proposed definition of “bioengineered food” to reflect its interpretation of the amended Act that foods with undetectable modified genetic material are not bioengineered foods.

 

Reading this, it does not seem like there is any "threshold". It either contains BE material or it does not.

If it does contain BE material, it needs to be labeled as such.

 

Marshall

 



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Bo16

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Posted 01 July 2021 - 01:05 PM

Processing aids are out of scope of the BE regulations (since they are not required to be labeled).  Also USDA has a tool for ingredient manufacturers that will help you determine the status of the product.  Your supplier is required to give you this information.



QAQC

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Posted 24 August 2021 - 05:48 PM

Does BE Food disclosure apply to USDA inspected items only or does this include FDA inspected items?



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Posted 29 December 2021 - 11:25 PM

Is there a difference with BE between USA and Canada?
I'm searching CFIA, but not finding anything. Hoping someone has info, or a link?
Thanks.



G M

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Posted 24 May 2022 - 05:23 PM

Excerpt from here

 

...

AMS adopts Position 1 with some modifications. The statutory definition of “bioengineering” makes clear that food must “contain[ ] genetic material that has been modified through in vitro recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) techniques . . .” to be labeled as a “bioengineered food.” ...

 

Reading this, it does not seem like there is any "threshold". It either contains BE material or it does not.

If it does contain BE material, it needs to be labeled as such.

 

Marshall

 

 

In the context of what the OP is asking about, "BE material" = synthetically altered DNA.  The highly refined corn starch in question is unlikely to contain DNA (AFAIK), and would by AMS's adoption of "position 1" in their examples not be considered bioengineered regardless of what kind of corn it was derived from.



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Posted 24 May 2022 - 06:59 PM

https://inspection.c...9/1333373638071

 

Voluntary labelling and advertising of foods that are and are not products of genetic engineering

In Canada, voluntary claims on foods that are and are not products of genetic engineering may be made provided such claims are truthful and not misleading, as outlined in the Overview section.

The National standard of Canada for Voluntary labelling and advertising of foods that are and are not products of genetic engineering (Standard), developed by the Canadian General Standards Board, provides criteria for making voluntary labelling and advertising claims that identify foods sold in Canada that are or are not products of genetic engineering. It includes detailed information including criteria for claims on both single and multi-ingredient foods, verification, and examples of claims. It provides guidance on the appropriate use of the terms such as "genetically engineered" and "product of genetic engineering".

For more information on genetically engineered foods, please see the Labelling of genetically engineered foods in Canada factsheet.

 

 

NOTE: selective breeding (plants or animals) is not genetic modification under the above statement nor is hybridization which occurs frequently with plants


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